High School Teacher Ken Bencomo Fired After Marrying A Man

Since Proposition 8 was struck down in the Supreme Court, same-sex marriage is once again legal in California. Unfortunately, just because something is legal doesn’t mean that people are suddenly more accepting and open-minded about it.

Ken Bencomo of Rancho Cucamonga taught at St. Lucy’s Priory, an all-girls Catholic school in Glendora, California, and was head of the English department. Bencomo is gay and for 10 of the 17 years he has worked at St. Lucy’s, school officials knew his sexual orientation and had even met his partner. Yet after all this time, Bencomo was fired from his position just days after he married his partner, Christopher Persky, according to The San Bernadino Sun. According to USA Today, the school justified their decision, saying that gay marriage goes against the teachings of the Catholic Church. Officials apparently did not have a problem with Bencomo being gay, they just had a problem with him getting married to the person that he loves. HUH?

Ken Bencomo’s students were aware of his sexual orientation and many former students are now planning a peaceful protest in front of the school in hopes that he will be allowed to return to the school. As of Thursday, Bencomo’s case has also gathered 10,000 signatures on an online petition to get Bencomo his teaching job back.